Shattered
by ray-of-light
Summary: Chapter 5 up! Yes! Shock, horror! *lol* Please R+R :D
1. Malignent Affliction

Shattered  
by Foxy  
  
This is perhaps a little hard to follow but I've had this idea for ages! It is dedicated to the fantastic actress Courteney Cox Arquette, THE Gale Weathers!! If review are good, I will add chapters.  
  
She knew... There they were; standing above her, huddled together somber-faced, like people at a funeral, exchanging glances and hushed whispers. It was not hard to interpret what they were thinking. 'Who did this?', 'Why?', and 'Oh god, how long was she lying there before Dewey found her?'  
She knew the answer to every single one of their questions, yet she found herself unwilling (or was that unable?) to put them at rest. It had only been a matter of hours and, somehow, she didn't feel ready.  
She studied each face individually. Sidney looked stricken, her lips tightly-pursed together and her eyes unblinking, staring not at her but at the wall infront.  
Mark had that look of someone who was concerned, but didn't quite know how to comfort those around him. He had his hand on Sidney's shoulder, firm but slightly shaky.  
Her parents were at the foot of the bed, standing slightly apart, just like they always did she noticed bitterly. Affection was not something that came easily to them, especially her mother. The mother who was the woman she had longed for as a child, despised as a teenager and partly identified with as an adult. The mother that so many people said she was "like in every way..."  
Thank god for Dewey. He stood closest to her, his face ashen. He seemed afraid to touch her, like one touch would shatter her now fragile form. She could see the glisten of fresh tears in his hazel eyes and she tried to lift her hand to touch him. It didn't move. Panic seized her suddenly. Why wouldn't it move? 'It's simple enough for gods sake; your brain tells your arm to move, and it moves. Why not now?' She tried again. Nothing.  
It all came crashing down on her at once and a feeling of pure terror like she'd never experienced before engulfed her whole body. There was a reason why they all stared at her so hopelessly but didn't try to speak to her. There was a reason why she was surrounded by what seemed to her like a thousand humming and bleeping machines. There was a reason why Dewey stood stricken, his pupils dilated and his lips pursed tightly together, not uttering a single word...  
"I'm sorry people, we're gonna have to do some tests now". The thick, swirling silence was shattered by a young male doctor standing in the doorway, shifting uneasily. "We have to pin-point exactly what happened to Miss Weathers. We won't be able to treat her properly until we do".  
She watched, unwillingly silent as each one of the people infront of her registered the doctor's words individually, and made their way slowly out of the room. Mark went first, his head bent low and his hand gripped tightly around Sidney's wrist who followed soberly behind him.  
Her parents headed slowly after them. Nancy Weathers' perfectly made-up face was unreadable. Her father Jack had tears in his eyes but she could see that he was desperately trying to blink them back. 'Yeah, that's it Dad. Don't want to ruin the macho image now do we?' The bitter thought floated through her head instinctively and she felt bad about it immediately. That wasn't fair. Sure, he wasn't exactly the model father but he'd been there for her a whole lot more than her mother ever had.  
Dewey was last. He walked mechanically, still not uttering a single word; he hadn't the whole time he'd been there. Just before he reached the door, he stopped and turned his whole body to face her. "I love you". He didn't speak the words aloud but mouthed them soundlessly in her direction before letting his eyes take one more lasting glance and exiting slowly.  
  
* * * * * * * *  
  
He'd tried desperately to sleep, but finding it impossible had taken the decision to drive. Originally, he hadn't even known where but after a while it soon became apparent that he'd subconsciously headed back towards the hospital. Not knowing what had happened was killing him. The woman he loved was in a coma when just this morning when he'd left the house, she'd been fine. Granted, she'd been slightly quiet over breakfast but Dewey had just put it down to the fact that she'd had an important interview to prepare for.  
As he argued with the receptionist and Head Nurse over whether they should let him see her, he got to thinking about how typical this all was. They'd worked so hard at their relationship over the past few months, especially after the last bout of trouble, they'd sworn that they'd make it work. He didn't know what he'd do if he lost her now.  
"Okay, okay... you can see her. But try and keep it down, there are other people in this hospital". The Nurse shook her head resignedly and set off down the corridor, indicating for him to follow her.  
  
He spent the whole night just sitting next to her bed, watching her, clinging to every last hope. Sometimes, he pretended that she was just sleeping; she looked like she was sleeping. But it was so unlike her, peace and passiveness were not within her usual character. Dewey smiled and thought that she was perhaps the firiest person he'd ever met. That got her into trouble a lot, but the short temper and passionate personality were just her, he couldn't imagine her any other way.  
He looked at her again. Her dark hair was spread out on the pillow around her head like a halo and her skin was deathly white, which only high-lighted the stitches and ugly purple bruises across her neck, torso and arms even more. He felt something snap inside of him and he did the thing he'd tried to hold off all day; he put his head in his arms and wept feverishly from pure anger and helplessness.  
  
* * * * * * * *  
  
Nancy Weathers couldn't sleep either. She paced the hotel balcony furtively, puffing on a cigarette like there was no tomorrow. Guilt and fear hacked their way through her slight frame in equal proportions. She was terrified for her daughter and she was terrified for herself. She'd thought that this was over fourteen years ago. How was she to know that it would come back and haunt them after all this time?  
She could recall that night vividly. How she'd begged her shaking daughter to not tell anyone what had happened. How she'd told her that her career..., and her life would be ruined if this little secret got out...  
She tipped her face upwards and took a deep breath of the cool midnight air. She caught a glimpse of herself in the glass of the french doors. Her face looked exhausted and old, pale as the moon with eyes as wide and as staring as an owls. Her right hand clutching the cigarette shook uncontrollably.  
It wasn't until she was about to look away that she saw the shadowed figure on the other side of the glass, staring out at her. A strange calmness came over her, perhaps it was shock, but she'd definitely been expecting him.  
"How long have you been standing there?"  
"Not long"  
"Did you do it?... Did you put my daughter in the hospital again you bastard?"  
He sighed perfectly sanely and ran his hand through his hair. "I didn't want to..., but she wouldn't let me touch her..., she kept screaming"  
There was silence. Nancy wished she'd just die right there on the spot. Anything was better than what he undoubtedly had planned.  
"There's no way she's gonna wake up Nancy... So now, the only person that knows is you. Am I right?"  
Silence.  
"I said, 'Am I right'?!"  
"Yeah!"  
He smiled and turned his back to her, humming insanely to himself.  
Nancy didn't even notice the cigarette fall from her hand onto her bare foot, didn't feel the pain as it scorched her now goosepimpled flesh.  
All she saw was him turn swiftly, without missing a beat, something large and heavy clutched in his hands. She didn't even have time to scream or throw up her hands in defence as he brought it crashing down hard onto her skull.  
The last image that crossed her mind before the darkness enclosed her eternally was that of her daughter, lying helpless and broken in the hospital bed, eyes open, glazed and staring.  
Then the pain ceased, the darkness surrounded her and she was gone. 


	2. The Past Is Not At Rest

Chapter 2- The Past Is Not at Rest.  
  
Hey again!! I finally got around to writing a second part after much consideration over where this was going to go- hope you like it! Again, it may be a little confusing but I promise it will all become clear in the end.....  
  
"How long have you been here? All night?", Dewey jumped as he realized that Sidney was standing in the doorway, a bunch of wild flowers in her hand.   
"Yeah.....", he breathed quietly, averting his eyes back to Gale. She didn't look much different from the night before but Dewey could have sworn that there was slighty more colour in her cheeks. He reached out and took her small hand in his as Sidney pulled a chair up next to him and watched silently.  
"Here, I brought some flowers, I thought the place could do with a little brightening up", she held the bunch out before Dewey and he looked at them realizing that they were red roses. "Do you remember the time that you compared her to a red rose?"  
He did. It was after they'd had one of their stupid little arguments about nothing much and Dewey had gone to get sympathy from Sidney. He'd sat there infront of a vase of roses and plucked one of them out, pricking his finger. He remembered the exact words he said straight after that: "If Gale is like anything, she's like a rose. Beautiful but thorny. She'll prick you when you're least expecting it".  
Now, to Dewey the bunch of roses seemed like a kind of metaphor for Gale's former self and he took them from Sidney and layed them on the bed next to her silent form. The red seemed so shocking against her pale skin and Dewey thought he would cry again. She'd only been in the coma for less than a day, but already he missed her so much that it hurt like nothing had ever hurt before.  
Sidney put her arm around him and laid her head on his shoulder. "She's gonna wake up Dewey... please don't give up hope."  
"Of course she's gonna wake up", he said determinedly "This is Gale Weathers we're talking about, she's invincible"  
They both chuckled half-heartedly at the truth in his statement and then sat silently, waiting for something, anything to happen.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"So it's definately murder?"  
"Of course it's murder! How the hell would this woman have managed to hit herself over the head with a tyre iron with that amount of strengh?!", Deputy Clark shook his head, sometimes he swore that Anderson could be such an idiot, how he made it into the force he'd never know.  
"Who found her?"  
"Her husband, Jack Weathers"  
"Hey, don't you think it's a little weird that her daughter, the infamous Gale Weathers, was only put in hospital yesterday... and then this happened?"  
"Yes of course I thought of that, that's why we're takin' Mr Weathers in to be questioned!", Clark stood over the body on Nancy Weathers and sighed heavily, he hated cases like this. "Something funny's goin' on here and I plan to find out what..."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
He sat in the shadows of his darkened room and ran one finger over the picture he was holding in his hand. She was even more beautiful now than she had been when she was a teenager. A cascade of long, dark hair fell perfectly down her back and her clear, azure blue eyes sparkled mischeviously. She was smiling in the picture but not the power smile that she used for all her publicity shots but a natural smile, vibrant and winning. A beautiful smile. He'd taken it from her house when they'd had the little run-in yesterday. He hadn't expected her to be home..., he hadn't wanted to hurt her yet... but she saw him and it all got out of hand. He prayed that she'd wake up so he could be with her one last time...  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
1987- The Weathers Residence, Northern Calafornia.  
  
  
Gale stopped apprehensively outside the door and shifted her bag from one shoulder to the other. She really didn't want to go in there. Her mother was due back from her little 'vacation' in Paris today and Gale knew that she certainly didn't want to see her. She hadn't seen her for about a month but she didn't care, the woman was insufferable.  
She took a deep breath and stepped inside quietly, maybe she could get away with not talking to her if she went straight to her room.  
"Did you hear something?", Gale froze as she heard an unfamiliar voice coming from the lounge, a deep masculine voice.  
"No, I didn't hear anything... you're so paranoid you know that?", it was her mother, there was no doubt about that. Her mother with another man. Gale gritted her teeth in anger and gripped the bannister tightly. This was so typical of her. She hated her, hated her for not caring about her only daughter, for putting her stupid job above everything else and mostly for having the gall to cheat on her father right under her nose.  
"I'm gonna check anyway...", Gale panicked as she heard movement from behind the lounge door and ran up the stairs, crouching down at the top and peering silently through the bannisters to see what was going on. She saw her mother enter the hall from the lounge, wearing a red silk kimono dressing gown, her dark hair piled on top of her head and a glass of martini clutched in her right hand. A strange man followed closely behind her, his power suit dishevelled.   
"See, I told you there was no-one out here", Nancy Weathers turned swiftly and marched back into the lounge, a scornfull look on her face.  
The man also turned but didn't head back towards the lounge, instead he stood on the spot, staring at his hands. Gale shifted uncomfortably and longed for him to leave so she could make her escape. She stopped as she suddenly realised that he'd shifted his position and was looking directly at her.   
He didn't look surprised to see her and a smile played across his lips as he fixed his gaze directly with hers. There was something about that smile that chilled her right to her very soul. She knew she had to get out of there. Without uttering a single word, she stood and ran to her bedroom, shutting the door tightly behind her and shuddering violently.  
  
  
Okay, I would write more but I really have to sleep right now... I'll definately continue when I have time but that's it for now. Please review!!! 


	3. A Face in the Crowd

Chapter 3- A Face in the Crowd.  
  
Hello-diddle-oh! *lol* I FINALLY got round to writing the next part, no thanks to stupid A.S exams!!! *kicks all exams ever invented* Oh well, hope you all like it, thanks for all your positive reviews!! Keep postin' em if you want me to continue! (i like being praised, hehe:D ) This is again devoted to the divine Courteney Cox Arquette, and also a whole crazy bunch of people that live at the CCAMB *waves* I love you all!!   
  
  
  
"Dead?!", Dewey found it hard to digest the words as the large, balding cop stood before him, talking in hushed, sobre tones. He couldn't believe that Gale's mother was dead..., he had only met her a couple of times but the woman had seemed utterly invinsible, it was then that he understood where Gale got it from. Not just dead though... murdered.  
  
"Yeah", the cop shifted his weight and glanced down at the notepad clutched tightly in his hand. "I was wondering if you might know of any reason why anyone would want Mrs Weathers dead..., or infact why anyone would intentionally put MISS Weathers in the hospital?"  
  
Dewey shook his head wearily and tried to breathe through the pain of the intense headache raging it's way through his temples. The last three days had been pure hell on earth. Gale still hadn't woken up although she *had* shown signs of improvement, what seemed like the world's media had taken up camp on his doorstep trying to find out all the gossip on Gale's condition, and now this...  
  
"Don't worry Mr Riley, you're not a suspect", the cop gave him a comforting smile and lowered the notepad, "We're just tryin' to figure out what exactly is happening here."  
  
Dewey nodded and smiled back appreciatively. He didn't want to make this cop's job any worse, he remembered all too clearly what it was like. "No, I'm sorry", he said looking the cop straight in the eye, "I honestly can't think of anyone who would do this."  
  
"Okay", the cop smiled again and slipped his pen into his shirt pocket. "Well, thanks for your co-operation anyway Mr Riley."  
  
"No problem."  
  
He was alone again. The silence pressed down on him and threatened to suffocate if it wasn't broken anytime soon. He realised that before, he had been taking for granted just the sheer amount of volume and exhilaration that Gale brought to his life... now, everything seemed quiet.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
There was a soft knocking at the door.   
  
Gale bolted upright and stared at it silently, a sudden chill taking over her. Her mother... it must be her mother, that asshole downstairs must have told him that he'd seen her. She sighed and looked out the window longingly at the people standing below, happily involved in their own little worlds, not caring that there was undoubtedly another major argument in line for the Weathers family. She closed the notepad she had clutched tightly in her hands and placed it back under her pillow, preparing for the worst.  
  
The soft knocking came again.  
  
"Mom, you know there's no lock on my door", she said in a voice that was barely above a whisper. Scooting over to the edge of her bed, she swung her legs over and sat, waiting for her mother to enter.   
  
The door opened slowly and Gale let in a sharp intake of breath as he entered and shut the door tightly behind him.  
  
"Hello Gale", he said and smiled perfectly sanely at her before taking in the whole room with his roaming eyes. "Wow..., quite a little palace you've got here, huh?"  
  
A white flash of painful, hot fear bolted itself through her body and she immediately felt like she wanted to cry.  
  
"Where's my mom?", she was disgusted with herself. There was this complete stranger in her bedroom, for no apparent reason, and she was just sitting there shaking, on the verge of tears like a little kid. But there was something about this guy, something dark. He had the coldest smile she'd ever seen in her life.  
  
"Your mom?", he smiled that cold smile again. "Oh, she got called out but she said that I could stay here for a while and get sorted out... Anyway, we don't need her, I wanted to get you all alone so we could get to know each other"  
  
Her heart was beating fast in her chest and her throat felt drier than it ever had done in her life. "No... no..., you better go, my Dad will be home soon." She felt herself backing away, her head in a spin.  
  
"Don't worry Gale!", he moved closer so he was standing directly infront of her shaking form, "Your father will be hours yet... you know he never gets home before seven 'o'clock.  
  
He was right, of course he was right... but that disturbed her even more, how did he know so much? She looked directly up at him, straight into those cold, steely grey eyes. They tormented her and turned her to a quivering mass of nerves. She sat perfectly still, frozen, while he reached down and put his hand on her leg, not gentle but rough and harsh. The only thing she could do was gasp as she felt hot, stinging tears brimming in her eyes. Her heart was beating so fast and so loudly in her ears that it blocked everything else out.  
  
"You're so beautiful", was the last thing she heard before she shut herself down completely. She was barely aware of what was happening which she later decided was probably best for her own sanity anyway.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
  
San Fransisco- 2002.  
  
"Yeah, well fuck you buddy!", Kristen Taylor stuck her middle finger up lewdly at the jerk driver that had just cut her up in the diner parking lot. She reversed and angrily watched as he took the space that she had obviously been driving straight for. He grinned at her innocently and gave her the thumbs up. Sighing loudly, she decided that she really didn't have the time or the patience just then and she gave him one last cold glare before driving a bit further down and sliding into another vacant space.  
  
The day was dazzling, bright and muggy and her head pounded profously as she made her way towards the diner and coffee bar, her usual breakfast stop. The cool, relieving air conditioning enveloped her as soon as she entered and she breathed a sigh of relief, feeling better almost immediately.  
  
"Hey Kristy, the usual?"  
  
"Yeah, thanks Jacques", she listened to the Frenchman talk about "the beautiful weather they were having" and other minor things as he prepared her coffee and bagels before excusing herself politely and finding the shadiest, most secluded table she could and sitting down wearily. She was exhausted. 'Definately time for a vacation' she thought as she picked up the newspaper.  
  
She froze.  
  
There was a small headline on the front page that immediately caught her eye and she felt a nervous knot form in her stomach as she read the story slowly, carefully, making sure she didn't miss anything out.  
  
Nancy Weathers was dead. She tried to grasp at the thought. She'd heard a couple of days ago that Gale was in a coma but she hadn't decided whether to believe it or not yet, knowing the trash some papers would make up just to sell a few more copies. But now this. She knew perfectly well that it probably had nothing to do with what happened fifteen years ago, but that still didn't stop her from receiving an icy cold chill down her spine.  
  
She made a decision. She had to go to L.A. Even if it didn't have anything to do with it, she had to at least try and help. Now that Nancy was dead, she was probably the only person that could help the cops, unless someone else knew...  
  
The sound of loud laughter at another table broke her from her reverie and she glanced at her watch. "Fuck... fuck!", she muttered, realising she was late for work. Grabbing the paper and her bag, she ran from the diner, reminding herself to fill up the car, it was a long way to L.A.  
  
Jacques watched her run out, slightly unsettled. She hadn't touched her coffee or her bagels and she'd looked extremely troubled when she'd left, not saying goodbye. That wasn't like the Kristy he'd served every day for the past four years.  
  
Meanwhile, Kristen sat behind the wheel, not even noticing the speed she was driving. She was too busy preparing herself to come face to face with someone she hadn't met for nearly fifteen years... Someone she used to know so well.  
  
Ta da!! I've already started Chapter 4 so expect that pretty soon, please don't forget to review (as long as it's constructive :D) I'm always looking for ways to make it better!! This chapter is in honour of Courteney's birthday that was on June 15th :) She gets more beautiful with every passing year! 


	4. Unexpected Events

Chapter 4- Unexpected Events  
  
She lay in bed shaking, terrified. It wasn't a new emotion but she'd never felt it with quite so much depth and brevity before... she didn't know how to deal with it... what to do. He'd left about an hour ago, still with that insane grin on his face, a grin that she knew she'd never forget, that would haunt her dreams for years to come. The strange thing was she couldn't remember that much of it. She was vaguely aware of what he had done to her, but it had seemed so far removed from reality that she'd remained in a kind of trance like state until only a few minutes ago... Now it seemed to all come crashing down and she wept, feeling dirty... used. Feeling so much hate for herself that she wished she had the courage to do something... ANYTHING to take the feelings away.  
  
"Chicken shit", she whispered and at that moment, looking back at her pale reflection, loathed herself even more. Unshed tears were lodged in her wide, unblinking crystal eyes and her mouth shook as if to try and hold back a wordless scream.  
  
"You're chicken shit Gale..."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
L.A.- 2002  
  
Kristen looked at the huge sign that dwarfed the highway ahead of her. 70 miles. 70 miles to L.A. A place that she had no doubt would hold many surprises, she didn't even want to think about if they would be good or bad. Realising she hadn't even looked at a paper or heard a news bulletin that morning, she turned on the radio. For all she knew, this could all be over already. Gale could have woken up, told everybody what happened all those years ago, and this could all be completely irrelevant. But part of her knew that even if this WAS all over, she'd still keep going... She hadn't seen Gale for fifteen years but for that entire time she'd missed her. They hadn't exactly parted on good terms, 'Sheesh' she laughed slightly, 'THAT'S an understatement'. But still, she could remember everything before that day, how inseperable they'd been. Best friends since the age of six, they'd had the kind of relationship that was close but also pretty turbulent. There was so much competition between them back then. She found herself smiling at how different they'd been. Her, tall and ash blonde, all american and typical, almost cliched in her good looks. Gale, willowy and gorgeous. Dark haired and blue eyed, her beauty was transfixing, sometimes almost ethereal. Yet despite all their problems, they stuck together... through thick and thin. "Weathers and Taylor versus the world", they used to say, and that was the way that it had always been... until that night.  
  
Kristen felt a warm tear drop from her left eye and roll down her face and into her slightly parted lips, hitting her taste buds with a familiar saltiness. She hadn't heard anything. Nothing had been mentioned about Gale, or her mother and the incessant whining of some teen pop star had driven her to distraction. She shut off the radio with a loud click. Glancing at her reflection in the rear- view mirror she noticed with disdain that she looked exhausted and white as a sheet, and she felt just as bad as she looked. Wiping her eyes quickly and taking a deep slow breath, she fought the demons and focused on the road infront of her. For her to crash was the last thing anyone needed right now...   
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Everything was still blurry but as she tried to focus, things seemed to become sharper. She was getting definate shapes... the wall infront of her... the machines next to her bed. She could even hear them now, the continous "bleep, bleep" that indicated her heartbeat. Well that was good, at least she knew she was alive... alive and feeling like absolute HELL. As feeling started to come back, all the pain seemed to rush at her at once. Her head pounded and her mid section and legs seemed to almost burn with pain, especially at the joints. She wasn't even going to try and move her neck, it felt completely numb. The strangest feeling overtook her... like she'd been drowning, but now someone was reaching out for her, grabbing her hand and hauling her out of the swirling, choppy water. It was an exhilarating feeling, liberating... almost beautiful if not for the sharp, terrible pain that came with it.  
  
Normal things started to come back to her too... who she was, where she was. What had happened was still reluctant to come back... it was like a thick fog swirled all around it, reluctant to let her see what she needed. The pain that was so intense at first, started to dim a little as she got used to it and she was aware of more acute things... She could hear soft breathing. At first it seemed distant, like it was in the next room but as she listened closer, she realised that it was coming from right next to her. And the hand that she had imagined pulling her out of the thick ocean of her coma was still wrapped around hers... although, it wasn't tight or pulling, it was soft and reassuring. She didn't even have to turn her head to see who it was. She knew who it was. Her rock.... But no, he was so much more than that. He was the first person who had ever really loved her. He didn't act like he had to, like her parents, or pretend to love her because she was beautiful and rich, like so many men she'd dated in the past... He loved her and she never had to pretend that she was something she wasn't around him.  
  
She tried to move her hand.   
  
It felt like so much effort. Her movements were slow and sluggish and dull pain coursed it's way through the right side of her body as she tried to lift her hand, tried to wake him.   
  
"Dewey?"... she tried desperately to speak but her throat felt drier than it had ever been, she could barely even open her mouth. And it made her head ache terribly. She felt tears coming, she felt so useless. Having no control over herself terrified her... it was something she wasn't used to. That was one of the vows that she'd made to herself that day, to NEVER lose control over her own life, to never let anyone else run it or take over.  
  
She moved her hand again and as she did, felt a slight movement to her right, heard him yawn softly... He was awake. She felt a sudden surge of energy take over her and she gripped hold of his fingers and squeezed as hard as she could, trying to cough at the same time.  
  
He felt it. He jerked himself upwards quickly, desperately and stared at her. She looked at the stunned, almost disbelieving look on his face and managed to smile weakly.  
  
"Hey..."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The next morning Dewey sat by her bed again, still gripping her hand and squeezing her fingers gently every now and then. She was still awake but they all realised it would be a few days before she would have the strength to talk properly and carry out any kind of conversation. Dewey was ecstatic but somehow the awake but quiet Gale was even more upsetting. All he wanted was to hear her voice again, to listen to a sarcastic comment or a witty put-down... but to be able to see those striking blue eyes focused on him again gave him the kind of incredible happiness that he could of only dreamed of yesterday. It looked like there was hope at last. Nobody had told her about her mother and he'd spent the whole morning feeling awful about it, but the doctors had advised against it, not wanting to upset her when she was still so weak.  
  
Instead he stuck to talking about other things, such as Sidney and Mark who everyone was pretty sure were dating, even though they hadn't told anyone as such. They'd both been by that morning to visit her but had left not too long after, sensing that Dewey was desperate to be alone with her.  
  
"Mr Riley?", the Doctor at the door startled him and he turned sharply, gripping Gale's hand slightly tighter. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you. I was just wondering if I could have a word?" he smiled comfortingly and clicked his pen against his clipboard slowly.  
  
"Yeah... sure.", he uttered slowly and brought her hand to his lips, kissing her knuckles tenderly before leaning across to brush his mouth against her cheek, stand up and follow the doctor to the corridor. He could feel her eyes following him and he turned and looked back at her. She seemed to lean back a little and relaxed her eyes, indicating she needed sleep. He knew that leaving her for a minute would probably be best.   
  
He shut the door quietly and looked curiously at the doctor who's name he noticed was "Dr M. Harrison" from his tag clipped to his white jacket.   
  
"What's the problem?", he asked tentatively, praying it wouldn't be bad, whatever it was.  
  
"Mr Riley, you may remember that we carried out some routine tests on Miss Weathers when she came in a few days ago..."  
  
"Yeah, I remember", he nodded, feeling the knot in his stomach begin to tighten... what was going on?  
  
"The results came back today from those tests", Dr Harrison shifted his feet and hugged the clipboard closer to him before carrying on. "For all the other tests, she's come out perfectly fine, apart from the obvious she's in good health... a very lucky woman"  
  
Dewey was growing impatient. "Look, what's going on?" he urged "... is she ill? Is that what you're trying to tell me?!"  
  
The Doctor looked stunned and held his hand out. "No Mr Riley, she's not ill... she's pregnant."  
  
"What?!"  
  
"Miss Weathers is two months pregnant... and despite her injuries, the baby seems to be perfectly fine."  
  
Heehee, there's a nice ending to keep you all hanging... *evil* :-D Thanks for all the positive reviews, keep postin' 'em!! Chapter 5 coming soon... 


	5. Revelations

Chapter 5 - Revelations.  
  
Authors Note: Yeeeeah, I know it's been *ages* since the last part, but eh, whatya gonna do? :p This part is dedicated to DMG because without her I wouldn't have done this, lol.  
Looking up at the grey-brick walls before her, she could feel her heart thudding in her ears. This was stupid, why the hell was she so nervous? It wasn't like she was guilty of anything... or she had anything to hide. But that was just the thing, she kinda did. And she knew why she was so nervous, seeing Gale after all this time was going to be so strange. She'd read about her in numerous scandals, seen her on numerous TV shows... but this was real. She didn't know how she was going to handle it once she got in there.  
  
After a moment she realized that a young man of about twenty-five was holding the door open for her and looking at her face with mild amusement.  
  
"You goin' in?", he was a Doctor, tall and handsome in a little boy way with sandy hair and deep green eyes. She blushed slightly, knowing that she must have been staring into space.   
  
"Yeah... I'm sorry, I got kinda caught up there", she laughed softly and walked towards him, through the wide-open door and into a bright, sunny reception area. It was a prestigious hospital and there were no hordes of patients milling around, no drunkards shouting curses and no rushed, frantic looking doctors and nurses, looking like they were on the verge of suicide. It was clean and well-lit, comforting. Music was being pumped softly from a sound system behind the front desk. She glanced at the Doctor who had snapped her out of her reverie and gave him a grateful smile, muttering her thanks as he waved to someone in the other side of the room and walked confidently away.   
  
"Can I help you?", the receptionist's face was bright and sunny, perfectly made up. It made Kristen feel more than a little uncomfortable. This place was too fake for her liking. It was like all the sunniness made up for the terrible things that happened within the walls. People dying and in pain. Shuddering, she mentally shook herself and forced a smile back.  
  
"Yes, ummm... I've come to visit someone. I believe she's staying at this hospital."  
  
"Name?"  
  
"Gale Weathers". As soon as the words left her mouth, the receptionist looked up at her and placed her pen carefully down on the desk.  
  
"Are you a relative?"  
  
"Um, no... I'm an old friend. My name is Kristen... Kristen Davies. You can go ask her if you don't believe me..."  
  
"Miss Davies, I don't think that's going to be possible at the moment. I'm sorry, it's only family members", the look that the receptionist gave her made Kristen stop what she was going to say. It stuck in her throat and she nodded resignedly. They weren't going to let her in, there was no point in arguing. She didn't know what to do. What if it was ages until Gale got out? What if she *didn't* get out? God, she didn't want to think about that. Her father. Jack... It was the only thing she had left to try. She had to go see him.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Gale was sipping at a glass of water, wincing slightly as the ice cool liquid hit her dry, aching throat when he entered quietly. She looked at him and he felt his heart quicken under the gaze of her blue eyes. She was silently pleading with him to tell her. Tell her what the doctors had said to him and he felt bad, nauseous even when he thought about how much she didn't know. He couldn't help but steal a glance downwards at her belly. His child... their child was inside of her right at that minute. He noticed no bump... but how would the doctors have been wrong? And how had she not suspected? 'More importantly', he thought, 'how did it even happen? I thought she was on the pill...'  
  
"Ummm... Gale? I kinda have something to tell you... well, two things actually." He fidgeted nervously in his seat and could feel the enslaughts of his brain trying to freeze up. He had to tell the woman he loved that her mother was dead. Murdered. And also, that she was carrying his baby. Dewey froze. What if it wasn't his baby? He hated himself immediately for thinking it. She wouldn't do something like that, not now they'd come this far. He knew her. He knew that she wasn't what everybody thought she was. And he loved her. He wanted to kill whoever had done this to her. Kill them in cold blood. And that scared him. Not knowing scared him. Not knowing what had happened or what *could* happen...  
  
He felt a sudden, sharp pain in his upper arm and as quickly as it it came, it was gone. Breaking his thoughts he realized that Gale had pinched his arm and was now fixing him with a slight glare, her eyes narrowed. Still as feisty as ever. God he loved that.   
  
"I'm sorry, I got lost in myself there... you know when you just get so swept up what you're thinking? The brain seems to entirely forget it's surroundings..." He was stalling. He heard her let out an exasperated sigh and as he watched, she rolled her eyes and then almost grinned slightly, knowingly. A rush of feeling overtook him and he ached for her. He wanted all this to be over so he could take her home. All he wanted was his old Gale back.  
  
"You're pregant Gale". He didn't know where it came from all of a sudden but he'd said it. He took a deep breath and watched her. She looked like she'd been slapped, her eyes wide with shock and her mouth hung open. "Two months, the doctor told me earlier...", he grabbed her hand and it was limp in his. She all a sudden seemed like she was fighting to breathe and he became worried, she genuinely seemed terrified. "Oh god, are you gonna be okay?" After a minute she nodded weakly and looked him straight in the eye. He wished so much that he could read what she was thinking.   
  
Still watching her, it all of a sudden hit him. That wasn't all. There was that other thing he had to tell her. God, he couldn't back out now. It was her mother, she deserved to know. "Oh god Gale", he whispered and he felt a lump form in his throat. It showed in his voice as it quivered gently. She looked up at him again. "I'm so sorry, that's not all... it's your mother". He closed his eyes and forced the rest out. "They found her yesterday. It... it looks like someone hit her with something heavy. I'm sorry Gale"  
  
For a moment he looked down at the clean white sheets on her bed, hardly daring to move his eyes in her direction. When he did she was staring at a point on the wall behind him. All the color had drained from her face and the look that she wore was completely blank. Her eyes seemed almost empty... numb. Kneeling infront of her, he took both of her hands in his. They were ice cold and he rubbed her fingers, desperately trying to warm them.   
  
They stayed like that for what must have been two minutes, the seconds dragging on to Dewey like they were hours. She sat in the same position, staring at the wall, her eyes wide. He knew that she was probably trying to sort it all out in her head so he stayed quiet, just watching her for any kind of response. All of a sudden he saw her face change, her bottom lip started to quiver slightly and her face fell as she tryed to blink back the tears that were forcing themselves out at her eyelids. His heart leapt and he leaned forward, gathering her into his arms without a second thought. He held her while she sobbed softly onto his shoulder, making his shirt wet. He'd never seen her like this and it scared him and touched him all at the same time, he felt closer to her than he'd ever been and in a strange way he felt almost blessed for that.  
  
Gripping her as close as he possibly could, he let her cry.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
He watched her exit the building and climb back into her car, her face a mixture of annoyance and concern. He couldn't believe his luck. Look who'd rolled back into town, none other than the lovely Miss Davies... that's if she *was* still a Miss. No doubt here to show her support for co-popularity queen. He thought back to a few days ago. Breaking into Gale's house had been a lot easier than he thought it'd be. He'd prepared himself for a full-on military operation, especially after all that ghostface shit. 'But no, she has her *man* now', he thought sarcastically, 'Yeah, loads of good he was'.  
  
Her coming home had been an added bonus. He remembered going through her things, finding the precious photograph and touching her clothes, the excitement it had given him. God, how he'd missed her. She'd caught him in her bedroom, standing in the doorway, a look of sick recognition on her face before she turned and ran in the other direction. He'd caught her at the top of the stairs and how she'd struggled. Struggled in his arms. He'd had to physically restrain himself from touching her again, she looked so beautiful in her air of terror, a light sheen of sweat covering her smooth skin. But he needn't have worried. The next thing he knew she was flying backwards, falling helplessly and he watched her, scared but exhilerated, fleeing the house with the photograph after he'd checked on her at bottom of the stairs and kissed her forehead.  
  
Kristen's car was backing out of her space, her eyes in the rear-view mirror, not noticing him though. When she'd turned out of the exit he started the ignition. Maybe it would be useful to find out where the lovely Miss Davies was staying. 


End file.
